Galway in Days Gone By
Galway In Days Gone By
1917
Daring burglary
St. Nicholas’ Protestant Church, Galway, was broken into on Friday night or Saturday morning, and three poor boxes forcibly opened. An investigation of the surroundings of the church by Mr. Barret, the sexton, on Saturday morning, led to his discovery of a broken pane of glass in one of the stained glass windows, facing the Church Lane side of Mr. P. O’Gorman’s establishment.
The pane of glass only measured fourteen inches square, and was one of three of the same dimensions comprising the lower portion of the window, which is protected on the outside by closely interwoven and secured bars of strong wire. To effect an opening in the glass, the bard should be first broken, a task involving skilful manipulation.
The size of the broken pane suggests the probability – almost the certainty – of a young person forming one of the party of burglars. The sexton found three poor boxes rifled. Considerable force was necessary to accomplish this object, as the boxes are of substantial quality.
Strange to relate, the entire contents were not removed, inasmuch as 1s. 6d, 1s 3d. and a threepenny piece were found in them. The amount of money contributed weekly towards the boxes is a considerable sum, and it is believed that at the time of the burglary, the week’s contributions were practically lodged.
The police have been actively investigating the matter, but up to the present have failed to obtain any clue to the perpetrators.
1942
Mystery solved
The Lettermullen robbery mystery took a surprising turn over the weekend when two local women were arrested by Sergeant D. Colhoun on Saturday and charged in connection with the larceny of £52 from Mrs. Mary Conneely. It is understood that most of the money has been recovered.
It will be recalled that some weeks ago, three masked “men” raised the home of Mrs. Conneely (80) and her sister (75) and having broken open a press with a hatchet made off with all the old ladies’ savings. The Gardaí had reason to believe that the “men” were women in male attire.
Four more schools closed
As a result of four more active cases having been notified since Thursday last – this brings to total number to date to eleven – Dr. C.F. McConn, Acting County Medical Officer of Health, Dr. P. Geraghty, Acting Medical Officer, Spiddal, and their devoted staff of nurses have redoubled their efforts to subdue the typhus outbreak in Connemara.
Additional precautions taken since Thursday last include the closing down of Furbough Domestic Science School and Furbough National Schools, Knock Vocational Schools and Salerna National School.
Cork raid on Galway
The Cork accent will be heard in Galway and Mayo in the coming weeks. The Southern folk are searching for eggs. Heretofore Corkmen sometimes came in search of sheep and pigs. Farmers in Cork and Kerry who usually supplied the Cork market with eggs at this time of the year are now unable to do so, and a search is being made much further afield – very much to the disgust of Dublin firms who looked on the West as more or less their preserve.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
1923
Gloom after war
The special correspondent of the “Independent”, who has been writing of the aftermath of civil war in the West, notes that a feeling of apathy, due to the uncertainty of events, exists amongst the sorely-tried people of Connemara; that politics are referred to only with disgust and that not more than fifty per cent. of the people would vote at a general election; that poverty and unemployment are rife, and there is a growing tendency towards emigration; and that there are bitter complaints of the huge impost of rates and taxes.
It is only too true that there is enough of material for the pessimist to brood over, and that a feeling of gloom permeates country towns. But it is a poor tribute to patriotism that has survived such horrors to encourage this gloom.
It is the duty of all of us to get this pessimism out of the national body and to rid ourselves of the notion that we have not enough Christianity and moral sense left to restore our people to cheerful and ordered progress and industry.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
1923
Peace negotiations
As we go to press, An Dáil is discussing the Peace negotiations between the Government and Mr. de Valera. It was announced on Wednesday for the first time that such negotiations were begun following Mr. de Valera’s “cease fire” proclamation of April 27, and that by the 30th of the month Senators Andrew Jameson and James Douglas were asked by him to discuss proposals.
They said it was for the Government to discuss; they could only confer. Into the ensuring conferences the Government declined to enter personally, but on May 3 the senators placed before Mr. de Valera the Cabinet’s terms, which were that future issues should be decided by the majority vote of the elected representatives of the people, and that as a corollary and a preliminary to the release of prisoners, all lethal weapons should be in the custody and control of the Executive Government.
Mr. de Valera relied to this on May 7 with a document in which he agreed to majority rule and control of arms, but added that arms should be stored in a suitable building in each province under armed Republican guard until after the elections in September, that the oath should not be made a test in the councils of the nation, and that all political prisoners should be released immediately on the signing of this agreement.
“You have brought back to us,” wrote President Cosgrave, “not an acceptance of our conditions, but a long and wordy document inviting debate where none is possible”.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
1923
State of the parties
Speculation as to parties after the next Irish elections is exceedingly interesting, especially in view of the enlarged franchise.
In Dublin, the view appears to be held by a number of people that Labour will make a great bid for power.
Dublin, however, has a curiously insular habit of thought where matters that concern all Ireland and in which Ireland has a say are concerned. We hope this insularity will rapidly disappear under the new conditions.
The country as a whole is backing the Farmers’ Party, and has not the smallest doubt that it will be the strongest combination in the next Dáil, and that it will oust the purely political parties, the one because it has resorted to force, the other because it has been compelled to use force to supress force, and the Labour Party because Ireland feels that at the back of its policy lurks the danger of Communism.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
